[prototypep2p]

Just set up a seahorse tank for my wife. 20gal. I want to put a mandarin goby in there. They only eat copapods or flat worms correct?

[Tonz of fun]

Originally Posted by prototypep2p

Just set up a seahorse tank for my wife. 20gal. I want to put a mandarin goby in there. They only eat copapods or flat worms correct?

Yes they do but I do not recomend getting the mandarin for a long long time. IT WILL DIE. They a very delicate and it wont make it in a newly set up tank.

[prototypep2p]

How long do you think i need to let it run?

[gimmito]

9 months minimum+you need an established refugium teaming with pods.

[swinginbeef]

unless you've got a nice 'safe place' (such as a refugium) for the pods to reproduce, the mandarin will clean out a tank of that size in no time leaving it to starve. Without a 'safe place' I've read that you'll need 90+ pound of live rock to keep the pod population high enough to feed a single mandarin long term.

Of course you can buy pods every month or two to keep keep the population high?

[pogodzib]

Mandarins are best kept in tanks with lots of live rock and a refugium. A 75 gal tank is the smallest tank that I would recommend for them unless you add cods constantly or find one of the rare ones that eats flake or frozen food.

[capitalb]

I have a 90 Gal reef with a pair of mandarins.Even though mine do eat frozen foods, they still need a good pod population to eat throughout the day. I also had a mandarin 12 yrs ago in a thirty gal over a year but he wound up high and dry when I switched to my 90! I use a product called reef bugs and my pod population exploded. Good luck

[gimmito]

Is that by marc weiss ? How does it work ?

[capitalb]

Yes it is! It's some kind of microbial food that feeds your reef bugs and promotes spawing.I've got copepods, amphipods, snails, turbo snails and who knows what else breeding like crazy.As soon as I figure out how to post pics,I'll show you.

[gimmito]

I use reef dna supplements by marc weiss...so I'm interested in this product. Let me know when you figure out how to post pic's directly on to reef builders !